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“Piper!”
Hannah’s jaw snapped shut as her eyes flew wide.
Oh, shit.
The sound of Toland’s voice made ice unfurl in my belly. He sounded pissed as hell.
Chapter Nine
We all froze on the stairs, then turned slowly to find the headmaster standing behind us. His gray mustache seemed to bristle, and his eyes flashed.
“Come with me,” Toland said curtly. “All of you.”
We exchanged worried looks, then followed him without a word. He descended the stairs and strode down the hallway, leading us to his office. As soon as we were all inside, he poked his head out, looked left and right, then closed and locked the door.
Damn. This is looking worse by the second.
Silence reigned as he sat in his chair behind the desk and looked us over. He grimaced, shaking his head.
Something flashed in his eyes that I hadn’t expected. Pity. Maybe even… worry.
I knew our appearances were pretty alarming. To be perfectly frank, we all looked like hell. Despite our efforts to stay clean in the underworld, our last few hours in the savage plane of existence had been particularly rough, what with the sewer and deadly fights and all. Dirt and grime covered us from head to toe, and all of us had battle wounds which hadn’t quite healed.
For as much of a hard-ass as Toland was sometimes, he cared about us. I sometimes dared to think he actually liked us.
I could only hope that would be enough to save us from whatever he was so worried about. Because I was pretty fucking sure it wasn’t our hygiene.
He breathed a heavy sigh, scrubbing a hand over his chin. “You know I’m sworn by oath to make you take your exams.”
“Yes, sir,” I said.
“You know that giving you those exams late two years in a row has already put me in hot water with the Custodians, and that they are hyper-vigilant about ensuring that I am not playing favorites with the five of you.”
“Yes, sir.”
He nodded. His jaw moved, and he shuffled and re-shuffled the papers on his desk. “I want you to know that I have no choice here. The consequences are too dire. If I had it my way—” He cut himself off, pressing his lips together. “Well, that doesn’t matter.”
He put the papers down and laced his fingers together, then looked up at us. He met our gazes one after the other. When his focus reached me, I saw sorrow in his eyes. My heart sank.
“It’s not up to me. I am bound by my oath, and I must report your absence to the committee. I can tell them your reasons, but it is up to them to decide what to do about your transgression. Whatever their choice, I must honor it.”
“I understand,” I said.
“I don’t know how long it will take them to make a decision.” He rubbed his temples. “The Custodians haven’t had much time for oversight recently. There was once a time when they would have already noticed and laid the hammer down—but things have changed. They have other, more pressing priorities right now. While we wait for them to decide, you are all welcome to continue your studies here. I don’t consider you a threat and have no wish to handicap you. As the headmaster of this institution, I still have that power, at least.”
“We appreciate that,” Kingston said, his voice sincere. “Really. Thanks for giving us the chance to keep studying. The more we know, the better.”
“Especially if they banish us to the underworld.” Jayce grimaced.
“Didn’t have to say that out loud,” Kai said with a scowl.
“Maybe they won’t do that,” Hannah offered hopefully. She’d followed along when Toland had summoned us, and he hadn’t tried to stop her.
But despite my friend’s optimism, the headmaster’s face was unreadable, which told me everything I needed to know.
“Don’t count on that,” I said grimly.
A pensive silence fell over the room. Then Toland nodded sharply, bringing our little meeting to a close.
